Modern Family is an American sitcom which debuted on ABC in 2009. Presented in mockumentary style, the characters frequently talk directly into the camera. On the other hand, the fictional show is filmed in a documentary fashion, but in a satirical way. The show focuses the diverse forms that modern American families can take by highlighting three nuclear families: a gay couple (Mitchell & Cameron), an older divorced man re-married to a beautiful young Latin woman (Jay & Gloria), and your “typical” husband and wife (Phil & Claire) with multiple kids.
The series has won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in each of the past four years. It also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy.
Character Introduction
Jay
Played by Ed O'Neill
Jay Pritchett is on the south side of middle age. He’s married to the much younger, much hotter, much more Colombian Gloria. There’s a bit of a cultural clash. Jay is pretty set in his no-nonsense ways. But Gloria is quite fiery and Manny is most passionate. They are forcing Jay to change the way he thinks and embrace new experiences.
Gloria
Played by Sofia Vergara
Gloria hails from a lovely little village in Colombia, which also happens to be the murder capital of that fine country. She’s married to Jay, who is quite a few years older. That doesn’t matter to Gloria. She loves what she loves. And she truly loves Jay and her son, Manny.
Manny
Played by Rico Rodriguez
This kid is an enigma. He has inherited his mother’s passion for life and often wears his heart on his sleeve. Manny’s zeal appeal is often lost on stepdad Jay but is always fully supported by mom Gloria.
Mitchell
Played by Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Mitchell Pritchett is a serious, low key kind of guy. He is an outstanding attorney who won an award for distinguished service in the field of environmental law which sat on the mantle next to partner Cam’s bass-catching trophy.
Cameron
Played by Eric Stonestreet
Cam’s bubbly, carefree personality proves to be a perfect complement to Mitchell’s slightly uptight ways. Cameron says, “I’m sort of like Costco. I’m big, I’m not fancy and I dare you not to like me.”
Phil
Played by Ty Burrell
Phil acts like a parent and talks like a peer. He calls it “peerenting.” Claire is the love of his life. Phil keeps their romance alive by sometimes assuming the identity of smooth-talking speaker salesman Clive Bixby. At the end of the day, family is everything to Phil Dunphy. They’ve given him a lifetime supply of happiness and he’s given them a lifetime supply of laughs and love.
Claire
Played by Julie Bowen
If her teenage daughter, Haley, never wakes up on a beach in Florida half-naked, then Claire Dunphy feels she’s done her job as mom. Claire will always fight for what’s right. She will always be a winner at home and the persistent one who keeps this Modern Family going.
Haley
Played by Sarah Hyland
Haley is supremely independent but sometimes a little naïve.
Growing up a little too fast, she’s a typical teenager.
Alex
Played by Ariel Winter
Alex Dunphy is super smart. She’s the middle child, which means she enjoys messing with both her older sister and younger brother equally. As much as she enjoys torturing her brother and sister, you know that she’ll always have their backs.
Luke
Played by Nolan Gould
Much like his two older sisters, Luke Dunphy marches to the beat of his own drum. It’s an offbeat rhythm to say the least. Sometimes Luke gets his head stuck in the banister, other times he jumps around in the trampoline while in his underwear with a box on his head. He was offbeat. Guess that’s why he gets along so well with his dad.
Today's Episode
Today we're going to watch the 3rd episode of season one, which called "Come Fly with Me."
facetious: trying to appear amusing and intelligent at a time when other people do not think it is appropriate, and when it would be better to be serious aerodynamics: the science that deals with how objects move through air typo: a small mistake in a typed or printed text wrestle: to fight somebody by holding them and trying to throw or force them to the ground, sometimes as a sport snob: a person who respects and likes only people who are of a high social class, and/or a person who has extremely high standards who is not satisfied by the things that ordinary people like.(Imagine Draco Malfoy in Harry Potter.) discerning: able to show good judgement about the quality of somebody/something jumpy: nervous and anxious, can’t stay on the seat steadily provoke: to say or do something that you know will annoy somebody so that they react in an angry way hick: a person from the country who is considered to be stupid and to have little experience of life silverback: a male adult gorilla with white or silver hair across its back scarlet behind: female monkey's red butt
roll your eyes:to move your eyes upwards as a way of showing that you are annoyed or bored after someone has done or said something boisterous: loud, clamorous, and unrestrained
charades: is a word guessing game. The object of the game is to communicate a word without using any verbal way. paper shredder: is a machine used to cut papers into strips Confetti and crosscut
Confetti cut (or micro-cut) shredders shred paper into small pieces of confetti. This confetti can range in size from dime-size pieces to needle-point pieces.
A crosscut shredder cuts pieces several times. This happens because the blades in the shredder are placed to intersect with the paper several times, leaving you with small strips of paper.
Shoot: idiom, means' just say it !' loop-de-loop: the same meaning as make a ‘u-turn’ when you are driving.Here,it means make model helicopter do a vertical circle. threading the needle 1.originally means pass through the eye of a needle with thread. 2. The act of killing someone in a shooter game by shooting the bullet through a narrow space at distance . Usually done with a sniper rifle and with only one shot. flatbed: a kind of cart with long steel board to load huge/heavy objects. Un peu: it’s french that means ‘a little’. thigh: It’s the top part of your leg, above your knee. piercing: If you have a pierce, you have a hole made through a part of your body so that you can put jewelry in it. Elaine Davidson, the "Most Pierced Woman" in the world as of 2009
Deal: It’s used for saying that you agree to something.
busboy: a boy or man who removes dirty dishes from the tables in a restaurant.
provoke: to deliberately try to make someone angry
loopy: crazy, or silly
propeller: a piece of equipment with blades that spin, used for moving a ship or aircraft.
it’s a propeller in flight.
irritating: When it is irritating, it makes you feel annoyed or impatient.
aileron: An aileron is a hinged flight control surface usually attached to the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft.
An aircraft 'rolling', or 'banking', with its ailerons
geez: GEEZ means "Jesus", “Christ”. It’s an interjection used to express mild surprise, delight, dissatisfaction, or annoyance. Namely, it’s just like “oh, God! ”, “Gosh! ” you’ll say when you’re so surprised.
Phrase
go figure: expresses amazement or disbelief. It suggests that the audience should seek to find sense in the situation (and probably won't find it). take it to the next level: have deeper relationship walk on eggshells: If you are walking on eggs/eggshells, you are being very careful not to offend someone or do anything wrong keep it real: to not pretend to be something you’re not. Be honest. you fight me on this: It’s not about hitting someone or using some kind of weapons against each other. In this sentence, “you fight me on this” means you disagree with me and argue about this – wearing a dress. smile at: it’s not just about raising the corners of his mouth, what that guy did is because he is interested in her. be hard on: “My mom was hard on me growing up.” What Claire said means that Claire’s mom was cruel or unkind to Claire during her growing up. thread the needle: Generally speaking, it means you put a piece of thread through a needle.
But here, it’s a trick that Jay flied his plane through the hoop grabbed by Phil.
That's the painkiller talking: This sentence means Jay don’t want others to take Phil’s words seriously. He don’t think that was his fault. He took a chance: People do something even though it involves risk. It’s kind of like running the risk of something. run over: to injure / hit someone or something with a vehicle and drive over them. never miss: never fail or never be unsuccessful. He tries too hard: When people try too hard, which means that they desire the acceptance of others, so they go out of their way to look cool/funny, but sometimes they act fake. mess with someone's head: When you mess with someone’s head, which means you seriously upset someone or make someone confused. So, what Gloria said means she didn’t want to make her son confused about his sex.
Cultural Notes
D-money! Chillin' with dylan the villain."d" to the "y" to the…: A way Phil used to act like a teenager
City mouse/Country mice: Town Mouse and the Country Mouse, an old story about a mouse who lives in a town and who invites a poor mouse who lives in the country to come and stay with him. The country mouse does not like the town, and when he invites the town mouse to come and stay with him in the country, the town mouse does not like the country. The lesson of the story is that a way of life that is suitable for one person may not be suitable for another.
six friends: six cans of beer
empire: kind of strategy board game. Players use strategy to expand their area to become the winner. Casablanca: Casablanca is a 1942 American romantic drama film, and the most important scene is the main actor’s former lover asks the pianist to play "As Time Goes By” which stands for their love before and also has been forbidden to play for a long time.
Here is the link of Casablana best scene' play it Sam!' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_a57ZNlU6o Betty Friedan: (February 4, 1921 – February 4, 2006) She was an American writer, activist and feminist.
A leading figure in the women's movement in the United States, her 1963 book The Feminine Mystique is often credited with sparking the second wave of American feminism in the 20th century. In 1966, Friedan founded and was elected the first president of the National Organization for Women (NOW), which aimed to bring women "into the mainstream of American society now [in] fully equal partnership with men".
The Feminine Mystique: It is a 1963 book by Betty Friedan which is widely credited with sparking the beginning of second-wave feminism in the United States.
Gloria Marie Steinem: (born March 25, 1934) She is an American feminist, journalist, and social and political activist who became nationally recognized as a leader of, and media spokeswoman for, the women's liberation movement in the late 1960s and 1970s.
A prominent writer and key counterculture era political figure, Steinem has founded many organizations and projects and has been the recipient of many awards and honors.She was a columnist for New York magazine and co-founded Ms. magazine.In 1969, she published an article, "After Black Power, Women's Liberation", which, along with her early support of abortion rights, catapulted her to national fame as a feminist leader.
How do your grandparents treat your mom or dad? How do your mom and dad treat your grandparents? How do you feel about their relationship?
If you’re a parent, how would you try to get rid of the boyfriend or girlfriend of your child that you’re not fond of?
Have you ever worked very hard on a relationship but never get anything in return? How did you fix it?
If someone who makes you irritated tries so hard to please you, what would you do?
Are you used to express your feelings to your loved ones? What do you usually do?
Do you wear your brother or sister's clothes? Why?
What’s the question you would ask your parents to freak them out? How did you figure it out eventually?
If someone asks you to number the people you've slept with, will you do that? Do you think 8 people are a great amount?
There’s been a constant debate about the hostility between mother and daughter in all kinds of works (literature, movies, etc.). We rarely see stories that the mother and the daughter get along very well. What, do you think, is the possible reason?
Have you ever been to Costco? How do you feel about it? Please compare Carrefour and Costco.
Modern Family
Program Introduction
Modern Family is an American sitcom which debuted on ABC in 2009. Presented in mockumentary style, the characters frequently talk directly into the camera. On the other hand, the fictional show is filmed in a documentary fashion, but in a satirical way. The show focuses the diverse forms that modern American families can take by highlighting three nuclear families: a gay couple (Mitchell & Cameron), an older divorced man re-married to a beautiful young Latin woman (Jay & Gloria), and your “typical” husband and wife (Phil & Claire) with multiple kids.
The series has won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in each of the past four years. It also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy.
Character Introduction
Jay
Played by Ed O'Neill
Jay Pritchett is on the south side of middle age. He’s married to the much younger, much hotter, much more Colombian Gloria. There’s a bit of a cultural clash. Jay is pretty set in his no-nonsense ways. But Gloria is quite fiery and Manny is most passionate. They are forcing Jay to change the way he thinks and embrace new experiences.
Gloria
Played by Sofia Vergara
Gloria hails from a lovely little village in Colombia, which also happens to be the murder capital of that fine country. She’s married to Jay, who is quite a few years older. That doesn’t matter to Gloria. She loves what she loves. And she truly loves Jay and her son, Manny.
Manny
Played by Rico Rodriguez
This kid is an enigma. He has inherited his mother’s passion for life and often wears his heart on his sleeve. Manny’s zeal appeal is often lost on stepdad Jay but is always fully supported by mom Gloria.
Mitchell
Played by Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Mitchell Pritchett is a serious, low key kind of guy. He is an outstanding attorney who won an award for distinguished service in the field of environmental law which sat on the mantle next to partner Cam’s bass-catching trophy.
Cameron
Played by Eric Stonestreet
Cam’s bubbly, carefree personality proves to be a perfect complement to Mitchell’s slightly uptight ways. Cameron says, “I’m sort of like Costco. I’m big, I’m not fancy and I dare you not to like me.”
Phil
Played by Ty Burrell
Phil acts like a parent and talks like a peer. He calls it “peerenting.” Claire is the love of his life. Phil keeps their romance alive by sometimes assuming the identity of smooth-talking speaker salesman Clive Bixby. At the end of the day, family is everything to Phil Dunphy. They’ve given him a lifetime supply of happiness and he’s given them a lifetime supply of laughs and love.
Claire
Played by Julie Bowen
If her teenage daughter, Haley, never wakes up on a beach in Florida half-naked, then Claire Dunphy feels she’s done her job as mom. Claire will always fight for what’s right. She will always be a winner at home and the persistent one who keeps this Modern Family going.
Haley
Played by Sarah Hyland
Haley is supremely independent but sometimes a little naïve.
Growing up a little too fast, she’s a typical teenager.
Alex
Played by Ariel Winter
Alex Dunphy is super smart. She’s the middle child, which means she enjoys messing with both her older sister and younger brother equally. As much as she enjoys torturing her brother and sister, you know that she’ll always have their backs.
Luke
Played by Nolan Gould
Much like his two older sisters, Luke Dunphy marches to the beat of his own drum. It’s an offbeat rhythm to say the least. Sometimes Luke gets his head stuck in the banister, other times he jumps around in the trampoline while in his underwear with a box on his head. He was offbeat. Guess that’s why he gets along so well with his dad.
Today's Episode
Today we're going to watch the 3rd episode of season one, which called "Come Fly with Me."You can watch this episode here:
http://www.opss.tv/video/play_3214.html?fid=19141&nextfid=19140
Here is the transcript of this episode.
Vocabulary
facetious: trying to appear amusing and intelligent at a time when other people do not think it is appropriate, and when it would be better to be serious
aerodynamics: the science that deals with how objects move through air
typo: a small mistake in a typed or printed text
wrestle: to fight somebody by holding them and trying to throw or force them to the ground, sometimes as a sport
snob: a person who respects and likes only people who are of a high social class, and/or a person who has extremely high standards who is not satisfied by the things that ordinary people like.(Imagine Draco Malfoy in Harry Potter.)
discerning: able to show good judgement about the quality of somebody/something
jumpy: nervous and anxious, can’t stay on the seat steadily
provoke: to say or do something that you know will annoy somebody so that they react in an angry way
hick: a person from the country who is considered to be stupid and to have little experience of life
silverback: a male adult gorilla with white or silver hair across its back
scarlet behind: female monkey's red butt
roll your eyes: to move your eyes upwards as a way of showing that you are annoyed or bored after someone has done or said something
boisterous: loud, clamorous, and unrestrained
charades: is a word guessing game. The object of the game is to communicate a word without using any verbal way.
paper shredder: is a machine used to cut papers into strips
Confetti and crosscut
Shoot: idiom, means' just say it !'
loop-de-loop: the same meaning as make a ‘u-turn’ when you are driving.Here,it means make model helicopter do a vertical circle.
threading the needle
1.originally means pass through the eye of a needle with thread.
2. The act of killing someone in a shooter game by shooting the bullet through a narrow space at distance . Usually done with a sniper rifle and with only one shot.
flatbed: a kind of cart with long steel board to load huge/heavy objects.
Un peu: it’s french that means ‘a little’.
thigh: It’s the top part of your leg, above your knee.
piercing: If you have a pierce, you have a hole made through a part of your body so that you can put jewelry in it.
Elaine Davidson, the "Most Pierced Woman" in the world as of 2009
Deal: It’s used for saying that you agree to something.
busboy: a boy or man who removes dirty dishes from the tables in a restaurant.
provoke: to deliberately try to make someone angry
loopy: crazy, or silly
propeller: a piece of equipment with blades that spin, used for moving a ship or aircraft.
it’s a propeller in flight.
irritating: When it is irritating, it makes you feel annoyed or impatient.
aileron: An aileron is a hinged flight control surface usually attached to the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft.
An aircraft 'rolling', or 'banking', with its ailerons
geez: GEEZ means "Jesus", “Christ”. It’s an interjection used to express mild surprise, delight, dissatisfaction, or annoyance. Namely, it’s just like “oh, God! ”, “Gosh! ” you’ll say when you’re so surprised.
Phrase
go figure: expresses amazement or disbelief. It suggests that the audience should seek to find sense in the situation (and probably won't find it).
take it to the next level: have deeper relationship
walk on eggshells: If you are walking on eggs/eggshells, you are being very careful not to offend someone or do anything wrong
keep it real: to not pretend to be something you’re not. Be honest.
you fight me on this: It’s not about hitting someone or using some kind of weapons against each other. In this sentence, “you fight me on this” means you disagree with me and argue about this – wearing a dress.
smile at: it’s not just about raising the corners of his mouth, what that guy did is because he is interested in her.
be hard on: “My mom was hard on me growing up.” What Claire said means that Claire’s mom was cruel or unkind to Claire during her growing up.
thread the needle: Generally speaking, it means you put a piece of thread through a needle.
But here, it’s a trick that Jay flied his plane through the hoop grabbed by Phil.
That's the painkiller talking: This sentence means Jay don’t want others to take Phil’s words seriously. He don’t think that was his fault.
He took a chance: People do something even though it involves risk. It’s kind of like running the risk of something.
run over: to injure / hit someone or something with a vehicle and drive over them.
never miss: never fail or never be unsuccessful.
He tries too hard: When people try too hard, which means that they desire the acceptance of others, so they go out of their way to look cool/funny, but sometimes they act fake.
mess with someone's head: When you mess with someone’s head, which means you seriously upset someone or make someone confused. So, what Gloria said means she didn’t want to make her son confused about his sex.
Cultural Notes
D-money! Chillin' with dylan the villain."d" to the "y" to the…: A way Phil used to act like a teenager
City mouse/Country mice: Town Mouse and the Country Mouse, an old story about a mouse who lives in a town and who invites a poor mouse who lives in the country to come and stay with him. The country mouse does not like the town, and when he invites the town mouse to come and stay with him in the country, the town mouse does not like the country. The lesson of the story is that a way of life that is suitable for one person may not be suitable for another.
six friends: six cans of beer
empire: kind of strategy board game. Players use strategy to expand their area to become the winner.
Casablanca:
Casablanca is a 1942 American romantic drama film, and the most important scene is the main actor’s former lover asks the pianist to play "As Time Goes By” which stands for their love before and also has been forbidden to play for a long time.
Here is the link of Casablana best scene' play it Sam!'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_a57ZNlU6o
Betty Friedan: (February 4, 1921 – February 4, 2006) She was an American writer, activist and feminist.
A leading figure in the women's movement in the United States, her 1963 book The Feminine Mystique is often credited with sparking the second wave of American feminism in the 20th century. In 1966, Friedan founded and was elected the first president of the National Organization for Women (NOW), which aimed to bring women "into the mainstream of American society now [in] fully equal partnership with men".
The Feminine Mystique: It is a 1963 book by Betty Friedan which is widely credited with sparking the beginning of second-wave feminism in the United States.
Gloria Marie Steinem: (born March 25, 1934) She is an American feminist, journalist, and social and political activist who became nationally recognized as a leader of, and media spokeswoman for, the women's liberation movement in the late 1960s and 1970s.
A prominent writer and key counterculture era political figure, Steinem has founded many organizations and projects and has been the recipient of many awards and honors.She was a columnist for New York magazine and co-founded Ms. magazine.In 1969, she published an article, "After Black Power, Women's Liberation", which, along with her early support of abortion rights, catapulted her to national fame as a feminist leader.
Listening Activities
Discussion Questions